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A blog by four academic psychologists examining the psychology of conspiracy theories ...more info
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Recent Posts
- How to dissuade parents from believing in anti-vaxxer conspiracy theories
- Introducing the Adolescent Conspiracy Beliefs Questionnaire (ACBQ)
- 5G COVID-19 conspiracy beliefs and support for violence
- Coronavirus is a breeding ground for conspiracy theories – here’s why that’s a serious problem
- If others are conspiring, then why should I be well-behaved?
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Tag Archives: conspiracy theories
Every mass shooting produces the same conspiracy theories (more or less)
The same conspiracy theories pop up every single time there’s a mass shooting in the United States, with minimal variation. There are a couple of ways to look at this. On the one hand, maybe the conspiracy theories are right, … Continue reading
The psychology of gang stalking, and the difference between conspiracy theory and delusion
If you’ve spent enough time on the Internet (or read the New York Times yesterday), you might have come across the phenomenon of gang stalking – the alleged stalking of particular individuals by organized groups. It might seem like gang … Continue reading
The great Columbia conspiracy: Why Trump and others seem to contradict themselves on Obama’s past
So, I suppose we should talk about Donald Trump at some point. Trump might just be the most famous conspiracy-monger in the world at the moment. He’s flirted with, if not outright endorsed, a wide variety of conspiracy theories, ranging … Continue reading
Posted in Social psychology, World events
Tagged conspiracy theories, obama, psychology, trump, USA
4 Comments
Are You Serious?
I’ve posted here before about why measuring belief in conspiracy theories can be tricky. Recently I was invited to visit University of Cambridge’s Conspiracy and Democracy project and the issue of measuring belief came up again, particularly the question of … Continue reading
Posted in Events, Personality
Tagged beliefs, conspiracy theories, measurement, personality, politics, psychology
3 Comments
Intention Seekers: The Psychology of Conspiracy Theories About MS804
I wrote a post over at Psychology Today on the psychology behind conspiracy theories about airline disasters like the disappearance of MH370, and more recently, MS804. Part of the appeal, according to a handful of recent studies, may be how … Continue reading
Stress and belief in conspiracy theories
A recent a piece of research published by Viren Swami and colleagues has uncovered a link between feeling stressed and belief in conspiracy theories. Swami and colleagues gathered responses from over 400 people, where the responders completed various measures, such … Continue reading
Posted in Personality, Social psychology, What's the harm, World events
Tagged conspiracy theories, psychology, social psychology
7 Comments
Suspicious Minds: Why We Believe Conspiracy Theories
My book, Suspicious Minds: Why We Believe Conspiracy Theories, is out now! You can buy it now from all the usual places, in hardback and for Kindle and other e-readers. (Amazon.com / Amazon.co.uk / Barnes & Noble / Waterstones)
Vice Motherboard article on conspiracy psychology
A recent article by journalist Molly Osberg gives an excellent overview of the psychology of conspiracy theories, including a few quotes from me, among other researchers. “There’s not that much of a difference, really, between conspiracy theorists and the rest … Continue reading
Buffering conspiracy theories with feelings of control
The psychology of conspiracy theories is an ever-growing field. I have Google Scholar Alerts set up to let me know of new research and the alerts have been particularly active recently. It is great to see the field flourishing with activity. … Continue reading
Bored to Fears
Do you get bored easily? Does time fly by for you, or does it always seem to drag? Is it easy for you to concentrate on activities, or do you often find your mind wandering? Is looking at a friend’s … Continue reading
Posted in Personality
Tagged boredom, conspiracy theories, paranoia, personality, politics, psychology, research
15 Comments
The Psychology of Conspiracy Theories 